There is a lot of paid work in research in today’s society.  Some of it relates to horses, too!  I was recently made aware of the Horse Genome Workshop.  As it states on their website:

“The Horse Genome Workshop is a cooperative international effort by more than 100 scientists from 25 countries to define the genome of the domestic horse. With this knowledge, scientists can begin to understand the genetic aspects of equine physiology and disease. Genetic tools have the potential to help researchers find new therapies and treatments for diseases such as laminitis, respiratory diseases, and infectious diseases as well as new approaches to solve problems not addressed with our earlier technologies.”

The Horse Genome Workshop

If you head along to the website, you may find some pages of interest.  There is a link to the Dorthy Rusell Havemeyer Workshops.  These are run every other year and are named after a horsewoman who established a foundation to support horse research.

The international workshops focus on horse genomics.  You can also find reports from previous years on this page.

Often when it comes to researching different aspects of horses, money is needed.  There is a page dedicated to acknowledging agencies that have helped to fund previous projects.  As an aspiring scientist or someone who does research, this may be of interest to you!  If they’ve funded someone else’s project, perhaps they are worth approaching about future projects you may have, too?

There are some pretty smart people out there who create and undertake studies.  At the end of the day, these research projects aren’t able to be carried out without willing research partners and students.  There’s also the need for people to provide funding and horses, of course.

“I don’t like people,” said Velvet. “… I only like horses.” ― Enid Bagnold, National Velvet

As I am reviewing content for students to undertake in their study this year at work, I am also discovering many new resources! Different horse websites; free horse related downloads; even different horse careers that I hadn’t heard of! I’m in heaven 🙂 A recent discovery was purpose games and horses.

If you head along to the Purpose Games website and do a search on horses, you’ll find some pretty incredible horse related games! And they’re free! What I love about these is that they’re also educational.

Want to learn about the skeletal structure of the horse? Well with purpose games and horses as your focus term, you can find such an activity! Check it out at Horse Skeletal Anatomy. You’re shown the skeleton of the horse and asked to identify different skeletal structures (e.g. atlas, axis, scapular, lumbar vertebrae, etc.).

As you determine where you think the bones are, you click on its associated dot point to identify it. If you’re right, it turns green. If not, it turns another colour, but you can keep guessing! You get timed to see how long it takes you to identify them all and you’re given a score. If you sign up for a (free) account with purpose games, then you can even rate the game and be listed on the scoreboard – if you’re good enough!

These horse games are fun, but they’re also educational. Why not check them out? They can get addictive, so be sure you have some time to spare! And if you’re like me, maybe you’d like to look into how you can set up your own game for others to learn from and also enjoy. I’m sure I’ll be sharing a future post about a horse related game/resource that I have created at Purpose Games ;).

Whilst reviewing some resources for an equine course, I was made aware of Manure Link.  It seems this website is a great online resource.  It’s for those wanting to utilise manure or those wanting to export it off their properties.  There’s also information on managing manure and best pasture management practices.

As its name suggests, Manure Link is a place that links manure seekers with providers.  So why would someone be seeking manure?  Many choose to use it in their gardens for plants, landscapers and others want it to build up plant matter within the garden or ground.  There are many nutrients in manure that can greatly benefit soil, especially if composted well or mixed in with other plant matter properties.

It’s for this reason that Jane Myers of Equiculture promotes horse owners keeping their manure.  When they sell it off – or give it away – they are often losing nutrients that the horses consumed within pasture / feed stuffs.  And these nutrients are passed onto someone else to benefit from!  That said, there can be such a thing as too much manure and many horse properties are eager to get rid of the surplus that they don’t use on the garden, harrow into paddocks or compost for later use.  Manure Link provides the link between those seeking and those looking to pass on, making it easier to facilitate the exchange.

Another section of the site looks at manure management and pasture management.  If you are a horse property owner, it is always beneficial to learn how to best use the manure that is produce on your property.  If you are able to manage your pastures effectively too, then this will make feeding your horses cheaper.  It will also make the property more aesthetically pleasing and decrease chances of weeds developing.  There is a page dedicated to common mismanagement practices to help guide people on effective manure management.  You can find out about the process of manure composting.

Managing pastures effectively has many great benefits, including:

• Improving soil structure
• Increasing earthworm populations
• Improving drainage
• Increasing soil aeration
• Improving soil moisture retention during hot, dry months
• Reducing soil compaction
• Increasing available macro and micro nutrients

Overall, it looks like this website is a valuable resource for horse property owners and managers.